Jazz Artist Interviews (709)
Get up close and personal with your favorite jazz artists!
After 15 years of rehearsing, Frank Vignola and Joe Ascione have arrived. Virtuoso guitarist Frank Vignola and master percussionist, Joe Ascione have worked together steadily, developing a symbiotic union which breeds energy, excitement and delicious memories with their 33 1/3 recording. Rarely do artists of such extreme caliber work together so well for so long. Now at their peak, Frank and Joe have reached in to bring other brilliant artists into their world, givin …
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A radiation oncologist by day and a composer and pianist by night, William Woods feels that the combination complements each other. It is very evident in his second release Cobalt Blue. Woods says that working with patients in his practice helps with his music composing. "The relationships I form with some of my patients and the way they live their lives as they face their mortality often inspires my music," says Woods. "But it works in reverse, too. Creating my music affects me on a spir …
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Although her album is called "She’s The Woman," it’s more likely you’ll walk away going, "She’s just plain amazing!" Mimi Fox’s name has been circulating rapidly throughout the jazz guitar community for years as a new force in jazz guitar. However, for those who know her better, it goes beyond the chops; Mimi is a diverse, accomplished and forward-thinking musician who has taken her love for the jazz language and transformed it into a vehicle for rich music that pulls from many genres. Growing u …
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It isn’t often that a concert reviewer is caught dancing in the isles. Trumpeter Ray Vega managed to make me do just that at a recent concert at Jazz at the Bistro in St. Louis, Missouri. His enticing salsa rhythms and progressive harmonies captivated the audience of the crowded jazz club. However, it was his love of life and gentle spirit that enticed JazzReview to learn more. JazzReview.com: I read somewhere that you were a frustrated saxophone player. Ray Vega : I’m not a …
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One of the most exciting aspects of jazz is the joy of discovery. I confess that I wasn’t all that familiar with the talented flute work of Nestor Torres but after I listened to his new album, Sin Palabras (Without Words) (Heads Up International) that I was glad I had traded ignorance for enlightenment. This album finds Torres exploring not just Latin and jazz rhythms, but a tasty mix of hip-hop and rhythm and blues added in for an extra shot of funky flavor. But Nestor Torres isn’t j …
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It would seem that Fred Hersch pianist, composer, bandleader, two-time Grammy nominee, Guggenheim fellow has little to prove anymore. He’s been called a "pristine pianist with a poet’s soul" (Boston Globe’s Joan Anderman) who strikes a "beguiling balance between technique, insight and imagination" (critical Ed Hazell). He’s continually received the highest praise in a highly praised field. Of course, one of the challenges for a successful creative musician is to stay hungry, to continue to s …
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Their name Sakesho (pronounced sah kay show) is the French Creole saying for "its gonna be hot." And on January 22 and 23rd this Caribbean-influenced jazz band would be creating more than a sizzle when they perform at the Catalina Jazz Club in Los Angeles, California. This would be the band’s first performance in Los Angeles and they promise to give audience more than a treat within their two-hour nightly performances. Sakesho is pan virtuoso Andy Narrell, pianist Mario Canonge, …
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It has been more than a decade since James Carter burst on to the jazz scene, literally blowing away fans, critics and musicians alike with his powerful saxophone. Carter's ninth CD as bandleader is the brand new Live At Baker's Keyboard Lounge. The album was recorded at the famous jazz club in Detroit--by reputation, the oldest existing jazz club in the world--and features a stellar lineup of guests including fellow saxophone greats David Murray, Johnny Griffin and Franz Jackson. The …
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There are very few whose roots touch the origins of jazz and who can boast of playing during jazz’s golden years with such jazz legends such as Lester Young, Bud Powell, Miles Davis, Charlie " Bud" Parker, Sarah Vaughan, John Coltrane, Lennie Tristano and countless others. Roy Haynes with more than 50 years of influence has reverberated through several generations of drummers. Haynes gave rise to innovation and created new drum and cymbal patterns making them central to his rhythmic approach …
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"I was driving around Nashville when I stopped to get a Coke. I was only going to be a minute so I left my banjo in the car, but when I got back someone had broken in and left another banjo!" Ok, we’ve probably all heard that one a time or two and I’m sure Bela Fleck’s heard it an even thousand times now. He may have even made it up. But if the oft’ maligned banjo (like Southern accents or trailer parks) were ever a running joke, it’s certainly not in his hands now. It's often said that the …
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This year is the Year of Mancini. In celebration of Henry Mancini, one of the 20th century’s most prolific and honored composers, Concord Records has teamed with his daughter, Monica, to release Ultimate Mancini on March 23. Many of Mancini’s most memorable songs have been re-recorded, in some cases using the original arrangements. In addition to Monica Mancini, the CD features several special guests, including Stevie Wonder, Take 6 and Kenny Rankin. Henry Mancini is best known f …
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After years of producing some of smooth jazz' most prominent stars, Paul Brown is returning to his first love of performing as he debuts his solo CD Up Front. Brown says that performing as a musician is "the ultimate musical expression." Brown started his musical career a lot like many performers, growing up in the business through their parents. Bill and Sue Allen worked in the Los Angeles recording industry as vocalists and arrangers and worked not only with many people in movies, b …
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Guitarist Peter White continues to release music that innovates the genre. From his first recordings in the early 90s, he brings energy that matches and exceeds his peers. About people remembering those early recordings, he says, that means more to me to hear a song that I recorded way back for my first solo CD 19 years ago. It means a lot to me to hear that music that's still being accepted today. It's nice to hear the new songs, but wow, that song from my first album still getting played 19 …
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Stacey Kent and Jim Tomlinson have been making music together for 15 years. Their latest collaboration has the celebrated jazz singer making a special guest appearance on husband and saxophonist Tomlinson’s The Lyric. The effort has resulted in no less than album of the year honors at the 2006 BBC Jazz Awards. "This album was pure joy," said Kent, who attributes the success of the CD to its collaborative spirit. Kent, who sings on nearly all of the s …
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There’s nothing fake about Skip Heller He knows how to work his guitar-make it talk-make the audience weak in the knees. And, Heller knows how to choose his band members. As Heller relates, "Dragging Robert Drasnin out of retirement was one of the smartest moves I’ve ever made." After years of writing songs, authoring a book, scoring movies and bits in Hollywood-- plus going back to Philly-just to keep the attitude ‘live,’ Heller has paid his dues. Now, he has gathered the hottest tal …
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The trumpet’s a strange, little instrument. A few feet of plated brass tubing on which legendary careers have been built. Yet like any instrument essentially a tool to produce sound - no two play are played alike. Consider and contrast the subdued, thoughtful delivery of Miles’ muted tone, the stratospheric blasts of Dizzy or the rich, burnished finish of Kenny Dorham; each distinctive and memorable, each pushing and exploiting various and separate boundaries of the instruments and music itself. …
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With his experience performing with artists as diverse as Joni Mitchell, Michael Jackson, Barbra Streisand and Chet Atkins, and with a solo career plus working in the smooth jazz super group Fourplay, guitarist Larry Carlton always goes back to where he got started, with the blues. When he heard his first blues album by B.B. King back when he was 15, he knew that he would always be influenced by that experience. In his live performances, the highlight of the show is when he performs the blues …
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A Love Song is the fine new CD from legendary bassist PercyHeath on Daddy Jazz Records and, shockingly, the octogenarian’s band leading debut. Brother to saxophonist Jimmy and drummer Albert"Tootie" Heath, it is no hyperbole to say that Percy has worked with the most important jazz artists of the last sixty years--there's simply no more accurate way to describe a career that includes dates with the likes of Bird, Dizzy, Monk, Miles, Trane and Ornette alongside his long tenures with both t …
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There are times in our lives when we tend to face the doorway to our abyss with trepidation and apprehension, an unknown entity that never seems to evade us, filled with turmoil. However, some are able to defend fear by escaping to a place devoid of hate, complexity and turbulence land geographically located in our minds that enables us to face the abyss with assurance and hope. How often is music the vehicle that takes us there? So to that, we ride with the talent of Keiko Matsui to the "Wal …
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Harvie S is one of the most adventurous musicians working on the scene today. On his latest CD, "Funky Cha," the bassist continues to push into new territory, exploring the meeting of jazz and Afro-Cuban music. The album features reworkings of a few familiar tunes by Thelonious Monk and Cole Porter, but it’s mostly made of up six original tunes that capture S and his band’s bold, infectious sound. One of the compositions featured is "S," which won second prize in the 2006 Interna …
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It used to be that each city had its own recognizable sound. Besides New York, there was Motown, the New Orleans thing, Memphis and Chicago. Each had his or her own brand of blues, jazz, funk and eclectic provincial mixes. Even Philly had its sound. Now with stylistic homogenization, increased travel and the Internet, things only hint at identities once strong and recognizable. Music is the sum of its creators and purveyors. With the gradual restoration of the original values that put these citi …
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Just in time to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the end of Apartheid in South Africa, Dave Love speaks for the many creative musicians still in that part of the world who as yet, don’t have a voice on the world stage. A remarkable producer, founder and president of Heads Up Records, Dave Love also has a vision: bringing the world together through wonderful music and fantastic artists. Love’s timing is impeccable with his January 2004 release: Ladysmith Black Mambazo’s Raise Your Spirits …
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Bassist Malcolm Creese may not be a household name, but he’s well known in British circles, covering many genres. Creese has played on sessions for artists including Depeche Mode; toured and recorded with Cleo Laine/John Dankworth and Stan Tracey; been part of large symphony orchestras, including those that performed the scores for the recent films The Lord Of The Rings: The Return of the King and Cold Mountain; and performed concerts with artists including Kenny Wheeler and Sting. …
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Mike Stern plays the guitar! (Space) . This is a simple understatement, and if you don’t know anything about Mike Stern, and his amazing ability to take the electric guitar and turn a tune on its ear then saying "Mike Stern plays the guitar" will be lost on you. This fantastic conduit to creativity we call Mike Stern, stands straddling several musical genres with feet firmly planted in blues and swing. All the while he remains a member of the vanguard of jazz music and electric guitar. Stern del …
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Richard Smith is a guitarist who not only has a successful solo career, but helps future guitarists as well. Smith, who backed up saxophonist Richard Elliot on his first six CD's and has just released his eighth solo project called Soulidified, is founder of the GuitarMasters Workshop. The program is a community outreach in South Central Los Angeles that helps at-risk youth by providing free guitars, lessons, mentoring and classes. Smith, who is also a tenured professor at the Univers …
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